tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10811641414724052202024-03-04T20:29:39.132-08:00Museum DreamsGranthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-72523334140449954402017-02-07T07:50:00.001-08:002017-02-07T07:50:21.689-08:00A Living Showcase of Plants<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSRZ0JiitDsZQHQiDozR2Dij5n67hQS6GT8xwgAUEjIiM7BIZA773OthfxpOfyUT6B10eRquvWuTlQt9yTSMl9Mb-0i4UkHUdbX-eGGYgzSEwRGUvw8a3P0FflcQ23SYVyPuAkQahw7Zo/s1600/Fanny_Pack.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSRZ0JiitDsZQHQiDozR2Dij5n67hQS6GT8xwgAUEjIiM7BIZA773OthfxpOfyUT6B10eRquvWuTlQt9yTSMl9Mb-0i4UkHUdbX-eGGYgzSEwRGUvw8a3P0FflcQ23SYVyPuAkQahw7Zo/s400/Fanny_Pack.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">My only picture of the Canadian Museum of Nature's Plant Life exhibit, taken in the late nineties. That's my cousin.</span></div>
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I recently came across an article about the creation of the old Plant Life exhibit at the Canadian Museum of Nature. It's in the March-April 1980 issue of <i>Trail & Landscape</i>, the newsletter of the <a href="http://www.ofnc.ca/">Ottawa Field-Naturalists' Club (which is still extant!)</a>.<br />
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The Plant Life hall was a real old-school natural history exhibit -- no bells or whistles, just specimens and information. And of course lots and lots of live plants! It was very serene, which I suppose was its undoing. All the Museum documents leading up to the latest renovation mention that Plant Life was one of the least popular exhibits. (<a href="http://nature.ca/pdf/plan00nature_e.pdf">See this PDF, for example.</a>)<br />
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I liked it, though. (I also liked its neighbouring exhibit, Animals in Nature, which I'll have to write about at some point.) I was happy to discover on a recent trip to the Museum that the observation beehive (a fondly remembered fixture of the Plant Life exhibit) is still in existence, now residing in the Nature Live exhibit alongside the other live insects.<br />
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Anyway, here's the article, reproduced without permission as always, including the photos that accompanied it. I'm intrigued by the mention of the Animal Life exhibit, which was gone by the time I remember.<br />
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The citation is:<br />
Haber, Erich. 1980. A Living Showcase of Plants. <i>Trail & Landscape</i> 14(2): 36-39. https://archive.org/details/traillandscape1421otta<br />
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<b>A Living Showcase of Plants</b></div>
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Erich Haber</div>
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National Museum of Natural Sciences</div>
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No doubt many of you who have visited the Victoria Memorial Museum building following its opening in 1974 after a five-year renovation program have been impressed by the updated displays that form part of the permanent exhibit halls. The development of these major exhibit areas is an on-going process requiring the efforts of the Museum's scientific staff, exhibit planners, designers, model makers and painters, as well as contract personnel.<br />
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In 1974, four of the new halls scheduled for completion in the Museum of Natural Sciences were opened to the public: <i>The Earth</i>, <i>Life Through the Ages</i>, <i>Birds in Canada</i>, and <i>Mammals in Canada</i>. Two years later, a fifth hall, <i>Animal Life</i>, dealing with the process of evolution and the diversity of animal life living at the present time, was completed. Two remaining halls are still in preparation. <i>Animals in Nature</i>, a look at the geographic distribution of animals and their adaptations to various environments, is to be completed this spring, hopefully in April.<br />
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The hall of <i>Plant Life</i>, next to <i>Animals in Nature</i> on the fourth floor (east wing), has been in preparation since 1969. Structurally, the hall has been completed for several years, and, in fact, has served in part as a "mini-museum" for displays of such items as nature art, ceramic fungi, models of whales, decoys, and specimens from the Museum's collections. The Ottawa Field-Naturalists' Club's centennial exhibit was also displayed in the hall of <i>Plant Life</i> last year. Since January, 1979, the entire hall has been open to the public as a temporary exhibit area. Some of the original artwork, photographs and models which were prepared for the permanent exhibits have been on display, set amidst a backdrop of natural wood panels and lush plant growth.<br />
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If you have visited the <i>Plant Life</i> area, you may have wondered what the scope and content of the completed hall will be. You might well ask such a question since there are very few major exhibits in museums dealing with plants as the main subject that you could use as a reference point. Although most of the topics which will be treated in this hall were conceived over ten years ago, the plans for the layout of the exhibits and the manner of exhibiting the various subjects have evolved through several phases.<br />
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The physical structure of the hall was designed to accommodate the use of a large number of plants of various sizes which were to provide the cohesive element unifying the whole exhibit. The specimens themselves serve as living showcases and are arranged in plantings to demonstrate the general characteristics of major groups such as the ferns, conifers and flowering plants. They have also been selected to illustrate the diversity in growth forms as represented by trees, shrubs, vines, herbs, epiphytes and succulents. The plants serve not only as functional elements, but, as well, are arranged to be aesthetically pleasing. By their abundance and variety, they provide an atmosphere of luxuriant greenery in a hall whose purpose is to emphasize the importance of green plants within the biosphere.<br />
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The successful cultivation of the numerous plants is possible due to an overhead system of high intensity growlamps which provide approximately 1,000 to 2,000 foot candles of light in certain areas. Enclosed planters containing their own lighting system house succulents, carnivorous plants, and epiphytes on artificial trees. Illumination throughout the hall is automatically controlled with the simulated daylight period occurring at night after Museum hours. Two gardeners are required to maintain the numerous plants in the hall and those scattered throughout the Museum building.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-1-9FAA55m0HTX6XuCh0MCpVgVgu-NR7Pvy8yq4HmibkUz82KfoCl1nQQLfcsW3tL9haLGO6iFB5b7Nv1G1eC89AfAR9DBPWwFz6mTWXXegumzPjEo_Ts1JyehegHB_XrIGJRywiYSzA/s1600/plants-trailandlandscape1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-1-9FAA55m0HTX6XuCh0MCpVgVgu-NR7Pvy8yq4HmibkUz82KfoCl1nQQLfcsW3tL9haLGO6iFB5b7Nv1G1eC89AfAR9DBPWwFz6mTWXXegumzPjEo_Ts1JyehegHB_XrIGJRywiYSzA/s400/plants-trailandlandscape1.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i>A view of the gymnosperm planter with its representative conifers, </i>Cycas<i> and </i>Ehidra<i>. A diversity of flowering plants is exhibited in a large planter on the right and in the turret behind the archway. Photo by Harry Foster.</i></div>
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<i>Plants growing in large ceramic pots hang from the ceiling in an exhibit area which will eventually house large models of a plant and a bacterial cell. The large reflector growlamps, here in the off mode, are visible overhead. Photo by Harry Foster, National Museums of Canada.</i></div>
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Within this framework of living plants, a storyline based on five main themes is presented: <u>evolution of plants through the ages</u>, <u>biology of the main groups of organisms</u>, <u>plants in nature</u>, <u>plants and floristic regions of Canada</u> and <u>economic botany</u>.<br />
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<u>The evolution of plants through the ages</u> is covered in a narrated slide programme supported by an exhibit of fossils, coloured reconstructions of extinct species and a 7 metre mural depicting the changes in the landscape during progressive geological periods.<br />
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In treating the <u>biology of the main groups of organisms</u>, emphasis is given to the basic distinction between the prokaryotic organisms (the bacteria and blue-green algae which lack nuclei and membrane-bound cell organelles) and the eukaryotic ("true-nucleated") organisms which comprise all other groups including the animals. The morphology, importance and life history of such groups as the bacteria, blue-green algae, water and slime molds, fungi, lichens, bryophytes and vascular plants are briefly reviewed. Special topics of interest relating to seed plants including pollination, dispersal of seeds and fruits, the importance of light to plants, and the structure of seed plants, are brought to life through the use of specially prepared artwork, specimens, photos and film loops. A fairly recent addition to our plans includes an observation beehive which is to accompany the exhibit on pollination.<br />
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The exhibit of <u>plants in nature</u>, a slide programme supplemented by a vegetation map and photo panels, presents a broad perspectus of plants in their habitats from around the world. On a more national level, the <u>plants and floristic regions of Canada</u> are reviewed in the hall's diorama theatre. Here, seated and with adjustable earphones provided, visitors will be able to view the movie, <i>Plantscapes of Canada</i>, which was filmed under the guidance of the Museum's botany staff. Eventually, eight dioramas, each representing one of the floristic regions depicted in the film, will be completed. The first diorama, now in preparation, is a representation of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Forest Region as seen at the Shaw Woods Nature Preserve near Eganville, Ontario. (See Albert Dugal's article on page 46.) In an adjoining area, the local flora of the Ottawa Valley is presented by way of large photo panels of specific habitats with superimposed close-ups of some of the common plants from each habitat. Preserved and mounted plants of the season will be on view in special display racks.<br />
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The last area for completion will be an <u>economic botany</u> exhibit. Topics such as plant fibres, spices, beverage plants, and plants and art will be developed in the coming years under the Museum's maintenance programme.<br />
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This spring, a number of permanent exhibits will be completed. Included will be plants through the ages, bryophytes, pollination, dispersal of seeds and fruits, structure of seed plants, plants in nature, part of the plantscapes of Canada, and the local flora exhibit. The installation of these exhibits represents the first phase of the completion schedule.<br />
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As you can see, the development of a major exhibit hall is a long-term project which involved considerable planning, documentation and resources. Visitors to the Museum of Natural Sciences can see the progressive development of a unique exhibit hall on plant life that represents an unusual display greenhouse complete with artwork, photos, films and specimens.Granthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-35991259241638368302016-01-03T15:55:00.000-08:002016-01-03T15:56:34.255-08:00National Museum of What?<a href="https://news.google.com/newspapers">Google News' archive of old newspapers</a> is proving to be a fascinating source of material for this blog.<br />
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For example, I just learned that in the 1980s, the National Museum of Man in Ottawa had a hell of a time trying to figure out what their new name should be. They wanted to change their name because it was sexist, and they wanted the name change to coincide with their move to a new building across the river.<br />
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But what should the name be? The museum proposed about 50 names, including these three: <br />
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Museum of Man and Woman<br />
Museum of Mankind<br />
Museum of People<br />
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None of these were quite right, so in the winter of 1984-85, they opened it up to the public. They received about 2,000 letters, over half of which favoured the original name, National Museum of Man. Here are some of the other suggestions:<br />
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Museum of Canajun Injunuity <i>[presumably a joke]</i><br />
Museum of Civilization<br />
Museum of Man and Nature<br />
Museum of Mutation<br />
National Heritage Museum <i>[the second most popular, after the original name]</i><br />
National Museum of All Men<br />
National Museum of Herstory or History <i>[hmm!]</i><br />
National Museum of Man (Embracing Women) <br />
National Museum of Man and His Wife<br />
National Museum of Men, Women and Gays <i>[yikes]</i><br />
National Museum of Others<br />
National Museum of Post-Matriarchal (Patriarchal) Culture <i>[what?]</i><br />
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This wasn't getting them anywhere, so a committee of experts was created in January 1986 to sort it out for good. Presumably it was they who picked the name "Museum of Civilization", although I'm not sure when or why the change was made from "National Museum" to "Canadian Museum".<br />
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<b>Sources:</b><br />
<a href="https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Kos0AAAAIBAJ&sjid=qqUFAAAAIBAJ&pg=749%2C4000256"><i>Montreal Gazette</i>, 30 January 1985</a><br />
<a href="https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=xm1WAAAAIBAJ&sjid=FuQDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3803%2C2228046"><i>Free Lance-Star</i>, 14 February 1985</a><br />
<a href="https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=LxgiAAAAIBAJ&sjid=7aUFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3962%2C1738826"><i>Montreal Gazette</i>, 25 January 1986</a>Granthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-13738697466188682182015-11-20T14:14:00.000-08:002015-11-20T14:14:15.166-08:00Old Canada Hall WalkthroughThe Canadian Museum of History <a href="http://www.historymuseum.ca/blog/behind-the-scenes-of-the-canadian-history-hall-project-with-architect-douglas-cardinal/">has posted a nice interview with Douglas Cardinal</a>, the architect who designed the museum building back in the eighties. Cardinal is also the lead architect for the new Canadian History Hall (opening in 2017), which provides a nice bit of continuity.<br />
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I'm going to miss the old Canada Hall, though. Here's a walkthrough that Andrew and I shot on 28 August 2014, just four days before it closed for good.<br />
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I hope that the new hall retains the immersive quality of the old one.</div>
Granthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-40600609100978376292015-07-12T18:12:00.000-07:002015-07-12T18:12:16.262-07:00Airplanes in 3DMy good friend and fellow Ottawa blogger <a href="http://centretown.blogspot.ca/">Charles Akben-Marchand</a> has posted some <a href="http://centretown.blogspot.ca/2015/06/3d-thursday-hangar-doors-open-ottawa.html">3D photos</a> of the storage facility of the <a href="http://www.casmuseum.techno-science.ca/">Canada Aviation and Space Museum</a>.<br />
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Grab some red-and-blue 3D glasses and <a href="http://centretown.blogspot.ca/2015/06/3d-thursday-hangar-doors-open-ottawa.html">check them out</a>!<br />
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Granthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-49690891312389115822015-06-16T05:31:00.002-07:002015-06-16T05:31:32.480-07:00Take the Sci & Tech Reopening Survey!The Canada Science and Technology Museum is <a href="http://cstmuseum.techno-science.ca/en/visit/public-consultations.php">soliciting public opinion</a> on the plans for their reopening in 2017. There's only <b>four days left</b> to take their survey, featuring concept sketches of the new facade and new exhibits, so <a href="http://cstmuseum.techno-science.ca/en/visit/public-consultations.php">take it now</a>!<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrXyrwuJ81BL5j8T-LwXcYrhyu8IFCYSx-CtnkGrcmzf-flDjnNsbr3gfnTQtfg2yExnAathP7j6uCchv6tbnquRDXVj2Qtm-ZrmsontuYLkKPJ1M5CPrqzqmx8gpbIgzCZWuolHErWmw/s1600/transportation2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrXyrwuJ81BL5j8T-LwXcYrhyu8IFCYSx-CtnkGrcmzf-flDjnNsbr3gfnTQtfg2yExnAathP7j6uCchv6tbnquRDXVj2Qtm-ZrmsontuYLkKPJ1M5CPrqzqmx8gpbIgzCZWuolHErWmw/s400/transportation2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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My favourite thing is the plan for the Transportation exhibit. The locomotive room was always the coolest thing in the museum -- you don't have to be a train fanatic to get a kick out of a big room full of trains -- and judging from the picture above, they plan to extend the concept to canoes, bicycles, snowmobiles, and everything else. Looks awesome!<br />
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But that's just my opinion. <a href="http://cstmuseum.techno-science.ca/en/visit/public-consultations.php">Tell them what you think!</a>Granthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-19912579687420143982015-03-01T18:46:00.000-08:002015-03-01T18:46:14.562-08:00Akeley's Ark<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKGpvm9IVbjMCjwZLFu80NBgkuTk4VQU-zVsosb64Pd6nsGGIqbp0OcS2XW3-jDVkt1evvwHkfyC8gxWGTBmAqmwvwZb3UfOJkNqrWwO7vUMzvpoSitBud9V6pL54IfgZri_I8jOurUGQ/s1600/DSC_0138.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKGpvm9IVbjMCjwZLFu80NBgkuTk4VQU-zVsosb64Pd6nsGGIqbp0OcS2XW3-jDVkt1evvwHkfyC8gxWGTBmAqmwvwZb3UfOJkNqrWwO7vUMzvpoSitBud9V6pL54IfgZri_I8jOurUGQ/s1600/DSC_0138.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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The dioramas in the American Museum of Natural History's Hall of African Mammals are like magic windows, glowing internally with reflected light.<br />
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Like everything else in New York, the sheer scale of the Hall is impressive. The dioramas are bigger than any I'm used to, and most of them contain a number of individual specimens, not just one or two. And there are two levels!<br />
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Not to mention the centrepiece of the Hall, a herd of African elephants. One of them was shot by Teddy Roosevelt, although I don't know which one.<br />
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The Hall was the brainchild of taxidermist Carl Akeley, who was worried about the disappearance of Africa's wildlife as agriculture and civilization spread across the continent. He wanted to ensure that there was some record that these animals <i>had</i> existed.<br />
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He also wanted to use the Hall to drum up public support for conservation. It worked! Akeley himself was instrumental in persuading the King of Belgium to create <a href="https://virunga.org/">Virunga National Park</a> to protect the mountain gorillas.<br />
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Unfortunately, the northern white rhinoceros, pictured in the diorama above, hasn't been so lucky. It was reported just last December that <a href="http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/extinction-countdown/2014/12/16/northern-white-rhino-dies/">one of the last six individuals has died</a>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizDdczr3tsFK8kdoLRx-IEqOkouyIUXfRsIqGM693qRysoQ7eIWQd3ZfH3ehUNfN-KDYzCn3zIinHnJlCr_y60jh2YkbGg3aJzF_LDBytv0TZtZGauWlAU0rZRsFreOdPNDCyw99sw-TM/s1600/DSC_0139.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizDdczr3tsFK8kdoLRx-IEqOkouyIUXfRsIqGM693qRysoQ7eIWQd3ZfH3ehUNfN-KDYzCn3zIinHnJlCr_y60jh2YkbGg3aJzF_LDBytv0TZtZGauWlAU0rZRsFreOdPNDCyw99sw-TM/s1600/DSC_0139.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">The gerenuk, my favourite antelope.</span></div>
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Akeley was, by all accounts, a badass. He was once attacked by a leopard and killed it with his bare hands. He also more or less invented modern taxidermy. This photo from <i>LIFE</i> magazine (24 May 1937) explains the process better than I ever could:</div>
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The attention to detail in sculpting the muscles really shows. Look at the subtlety of the facial muscles of this Grevy's zebra:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUun6l_BUxlE6P0P5acpmwmTkz1hhfBMbwMWxlGF97g-ddbxtL5GhxQ_HqFxtfNkQWfWDQEC5ulm3HSYghxTFc0WweshtzN74o_3TLjZrOzAQ9s2_N-C3qV5FFSqUKJdhp6S-DaUUoknc/s1600/DSC_0101.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUun6l_BUxlE6P0P5acpmwmTkz1hhfBMbwMWxlGF97g-ddbxtL5GhxQ_HqFxtfNkQWfWDQEC5ulm3HSYghxTFc0WweshtzN74o_3TLjZrOzAQ9s2_N-C3qV5FFSqUKJdhp6S-DaUUoknc/s1600/DSC_0101.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Equal to Akeley's desire to preserve Africa before it was gone forever, was his desire to bring Africa to you. In an age before David Attenborough specials, it wasn't easy for an average North American to see African wildlife in its natural habitat.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbzQKUzzDfdi-83pCijmDpAfQKDurDq1aG25Uv4mQOHU9cTMSOCKeyq_hnJP7f0aAQScZ9YFnUWGAG1308VkN5M6Dxpg4SyJTySLTwB0ii5zITRiHWgE4jGtcCc9yZ5URBHyRUhKPL7Sw/s1600/DSC_0115.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbzQKUzzDfdi-83pCijmDpAfQKDurDq1aG25Uv4mQOHU9cTMSOCKeyq_hnJP7f0aAQScZ9YFnUWGAG1308VkN5M6Dxpg4SyJTySLTwB0ii5zITRiHWgE4jGtcCc9yZ5URBHyRUhKPL7Sw/s1600/DSC_0115.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Detail of gemsbok diorama</span></div>
<br />
To that end, every diorama was based on an actual location. (Museum artist Stephen Quinn <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsrEOKzxL5A">visited the site of the gorilla diorama</a> a few years ago.) Fanatical about accuracy in every detail, Akeley and his team catalogued all the plants in the area, and collected everything from dirt to fallen leaves, all of which ended up in the dioramas.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu_Q7kXAl5SnPO3MXsORhSdw-xR-AIU3y1sfhbxGHJa3771zoX8qaApWTwPlE7A42__vofX5ZseS2-CmYHw6VF_eoxrqX4h2ZzYVQp0LjUteqG9TsuqR1zoCMrQ88E9vrlGVhnHwwGKDQ/s1600/Color+notes,+for+use+in+Mandrill+Group.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu_Q7kXAl5SnPO3MXsORhSdw-xR-AIU3y1sfhbxGHJa3771zoX8qaApWTwPlE7A42__vofX5ZseS2-CmYHw6VF_eoxrqX4h2ZzYVQp0LjUteqG9TsuqR1zoCMrQ88E9vrlGVhnHwwGKDQ/s1600/Color+notes,+for+use+in+Mandrill+Group.jpg" height="320" width="211" /></a></div>
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Colour photography wasn't in widespread use yet, and anyway, cameras don't capture colour in the same way that your eye does. So artists painted "colour notes" in the field so that they could accurately reproduce the colours when they got back to New York. Above are the colour notes for the plants in the mandrill diorama (<a href="http://images.library.amnh.org/digital/exhibits/show/nkk">source</a>).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhygyQ-_TfYW1-MManvNGJLrDkic0WF6WXVhQNPDC_WjQlIbB04yHfiF6QNx51zKWH_CFkytSMdXW8-_aNdV6x7SBK5yz_ryhC49LNkhVzf6FMnSBPVaQIfRDxHw8CwDaEvES9zldIAp0Y/s1600/DSC_0103.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhygyQ-_TfYW1-MManvNGJLrDkic0WF6WXVhQNPDC_WjQlIbB04yHfiF6QNx51zKWH_CFkytSMdXW8-_aNdV6x7SBK5yz_ryhC49LNkhVzf6FMnSBPVaQIfRDxHw8CwDaEvES9zldIAp0Y/s1600/DSC_0103.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRwLzMBDzeh1bHDmneITcbxPhHmnZhYAx9P9vKEZp2j71GjvibHChc201n81x5BDpa_OXnmCdUfWqogVJA6i3ffn5bCPoDu-Uq0x8eIr-q-QcvX62NWxSuncGimquXiL9sfoFGFAplpqc/s1600/DSC_0114.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRwLzMBDzeh1bHDmneITcbxPhHmnZhYAx9P9vKEZp2j71GjvibHChc201n81x5BDpa_OXnmCdUfWqogVJA6i3ffn5bCPoDu-Uq0x8eIr-q-QcvX62NWxSuncGimquXiL9sfoFGFAplpqc/s1600/DSC_0114.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwf3oktJXosL3ZRwHDiWsiPjd1xwsrdEgpTnN0fEi8qIPnNWR-yOR6dbUDBSy8gQyjm6hnXTEtw3swEkhEF5OlMH6xp3E92-oA7IXeBRb9oNLSsO5IV5wYsG0QmCFpa-vlznck6IciJJo/s1600/DSC_0116.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwf3oktJXosL3ZRwHDiWsiPjd1xwsrdEgpTnN0fEi8qIPnNWR-yOR6dbUDBSy8gQyjm6hnXTEtw3swEkhEF5OlMH6xp3E92-oA7IXeBRb9oNLSsO5IV5wYsG0QmCFpa-vlznck6IciJJo/s1600/DSC_0116.JPG" height="213" width="141" /></a></div>
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</tbody></table>
<br />
Here you can see the lighting setups for dioramas representing two very different environments and lighting conditions -- bongos in a shadowy bamboo forest, and gemsboks in the baking Kalahari desert. The lights are mounted behind a "window" right above the glass panel that you look through.<br />
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The bongo diorama also contains a small mirror, hidden from view, that reflects a gleam into the bongos' eyes.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhubuXbowqaoids7lb5oWBwvcxA11PPtwDHlrcDednH1ZE4RjhdUudEFJreIQKBlbskeKsmc2F3x8o-8yk330EAIS2ARcnEPI5gLDX-iUzBGICxomfw1t8czGXxfoBeldlZr6HktVsVbbI/s1600/DSC_0146.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhubuXbowqaoids7lb5oWBwvcxA11PPtwDHlrcDednH1ZE4RjhdUudEFJreIQKBlbskeKsmc2F3x8o-8yk330EAIS2ARcnEPI5gLDX-iUzBGICxomfw1t8czGXxfoBeldlZr6HktVsVbbI/s1600/DSC_0146.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
This diorama, of hunting dogs at sunrise, features my favourite lighting effect in the whole exhibit. One main light shines onto the backdrop, illuminating the spot where the sun is rising above the horizon. The effect is subtler than it appears in this photo; in person, it really does look like the glow is emanating from the rising sun.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWsfxIjoHVhzX02mus5Ro3t6CVY4PBu6BHda_QdH7zkcJNvlehw-6aDKXZYRRHWrZlr2IWat1OiTra4J5XknqhH7g44mfV6z_Om_XSlfKuTcq2xwRCeaUm-GDJrm_0_5cA28SyZQZRH00/s1600/gorilla-newyorktimes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWsfxIjoHVhzX02mus5Ro3t6CVY4PBu6BHda_QdH7zkcJNvlehw-6aDKXZYRRHWrZlr2IWat1OiTra4J5XknqhH7g44mfV6z_Om_XSlfKuTcq2xwRCeaUm-GDJrm_0_5cA28SyZQZRH00/s1600/gorilla-newyorktimes.jpg" height="320" width="248" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">New York Times, 17 May 1936 </span></div>
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Several times during my visit to the Hall, I saw people standing in front of the gorilla diorama, taking pictures of it with their cell phones. Silhouetted against the glass, elbows out to their sides, their pose looked identical to that of the big male gorilla in the centre of the diorama. I wish I'd gotten a photo of that. <br />
<br />
Carl Akeley died in 1926, before the Hall was completed. He was on a trip to collect material for the gorilla diorama. He died, and was buried, very close to the location depicted in that diorama, a location he considered to be the most beautiful place in the world.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj037mCFeEVAXEHDbJhFXnzaBpwqbisoNuw1GDAYjKufgQ_iCYgQg3pYxiTcqkxstV0H8s2OtIMqthrUDck5BNE9oEfWG8Au3RkgJsICwo7JPRgp1LRvBxYKRwWR2m0_uTpBKtnnAYmvbQ/s1600/DSC_0119.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj037mCFeEVAXEHDbJhFXnzaBpwqbisoNuw1GDAYjKufgQ_iCYgQg3pYxiTcqkxstV0H8s2OtIMqthrUDck5BNE9oEfWG8Au3RkgJsICwo7JPRgp1LRvBxYKRwWR2m0_uTpBKtnnAYmvbQ/s1600/DSC_0119.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Libyan desert</span></div>
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If you want to see more of Akeley Hall of African Mammals, <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/11061732@N07/sets/72157633279406464">this Flickr user</a> has some awesome photos of the dioramas taken with a fisheye lens. And <a href="http://images.library.amnh.org/digital/exhibits/show/nkk">this amazing online exhibit</a> on the AMNH website has a ton of archival materials relating to the Hall.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirR2pOIswqEIYwqbR_VWB_qK7mq0TL-5JYlWMNHSYSnfxoyCFtcTD8JuBni8M4q-80wAxif6JTfC3Q2A3zPuaCPPXqTtbt-B8MyKl9MEhEtcnktAglG8zRilZ3JzyH7FJdw6Th9-zxyuw/s1600/DSC_0147.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirR2pOIswqEIYwqbR_VWB_qK7mq0TL-5JYlWMNHSYSnfxoyCFtcTD8JuBni8M4q-80wAxif6JTfC3Q2A3zPuaCPPXqTtbt-B8MyKl9MEhEtcnktAglG8zRilZ3JzyH7FJdw6Th9-zxyuw/s1600/DSC_0147.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Colobus monkeys</span></div>
<br />
<b>Sources:</b><br />
<br />
Preston, D.J. 1986. <i>Dinosaurs in the Attic: An Excursion Into the American Museum of Natural History.</i> Ballantine Books, New York, 308 pp.<br />
<br />
Quinn, S.C. 2006. <i>Windows on Nature: The Great Habitat Dioramas of the American Museum of Natural History</i>. Abrams, New York, 179 pp. Granthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-45213087932563039092015-02-28T20:15:00.000-08:002016-01-03T15:59:36.075-08:00The rules for making a national museum in Canada.<div class="MsoNormal">
Rule 1: Hire an expensive, internationally renowned
architect to create a jarring, distinct, and ostentatious design to please
architectural critics and hopefully win a prize.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Rule 2: for the love of God make sure you have a large grand
hall that you can rent out to wedding groups and for diplomatic occasions.
Remember just because you’re subsidized by 35 million people doesn't mean you
can afford to get cheap.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Rule 3: have a grand entrance to allow the people bask in
the glory of the design. Don't worry about putting anything really at all in
the grand entrance, the aforementioned superiority of the architectural design
will pummel the visitors submission. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Rule 4: This is really important, don't forget to include
the actual exhibits in your museum. The public will spend exorbitant amounts of
money to get into your museum, even though you’re a public institutions, so
they will expect to learn a thing or two. Make sure to keep it as
impressionistic as possible. Remember taxpayers aren't paying for specific
facts.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Rule five: Be sure to refer to your national museum as <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>world class at every available
opportunity. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you don't, people
might realize, I mean, er, suspect that your full shit. </div>
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<br /></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
Review: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When
looking at the floor plan of the museum, if exhibits are a clump in the middle
of everything else, instead of everything else a clump middle of the exhibits, you
know you've done a good job. They only complain because they're jealous.</div>
AndrewGhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00848159064294440816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-80553513544063682972015-02-26T14:37:00.001-08:002015-02-26T14:37:33.279-08:00Up and Down<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_vNynB9TJXda-roAyIXvMxxNplua2fDu8ZgTJbGgzg8P1FkDJwVKPh_a6U-bJYU-EjLdmv6QZtGi19X9OjLS59hh42gxsi5WWYN_aUTBoKFfO9kNk472t9PK_4yrV1Da0OAZ9mMoH-i0/s1600/raising+atlas+rocket+1973.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_vNynB9TJXda-roAyIXvMxxNplua2fDu8ZgTJbGgzg8P1FkDJwVKPh_a6U-bJYU-EjLdmv6QZtGi19X9OjLS59hh42gxsi5WWYN_aUTBoKFfO9kNk472t9PK_4yrV1Da0OAZ9mMoH-i0/s1600/raising+atlas+rocket+1973.jpg" height="214" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Above: The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SM-65_Atlas">Atlas 5A rocket</a> being installed outside the <a href="http://cstmuseum.techno-science.ca/en/">Canada Science and Technology Museum</a> in 1973.<br />
<br />
Below: The same rocket being taken down, yesterday.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1rSI48aZ_de8VKTIBgDlwOUYB2zKe8msAOekmhByJ6hfVFvr8r_OMn2aQmZCbLaPrtdFFfMLV2PM9r6HPqVuQyY4VnGTZZ7AhezneMcvrIt7t_UB18dxELcdb9NQ34YpaPzpmg0aqTvM/s1600/atlas-down-2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1rSI48aZ_de8VKTIBgDlwOUYB2zKe8msAOekmhByJ6hfVFvr8r_OMn2aQmZCbLaPrtdFFfMLV2PM9r6HPqVuQyY4VnGTZZ7AhezneMcvrIt7t_UB18dxELcdb9NQ34YpaPzpmg0aqTvM/s1600/atlas-down-2015.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Credit for both photos belongs to the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/LostOttawa">Lost Ottawa</a> Facebook community.Granthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-81054034309133142852015-02-06T12:26:00.000-08:002015-02-06T12:27:59.342-08:00Dioramas in Milan<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEDnK-oMy_YoJ1ZwVz2XF8BOdAQDvmqfPhF-gDsfLJLOJqsRte1ypiScFB_QgM6_s2xX3tMNtdiC_54EwqchwgQqQ5gyymn4Y3Y1_o-d1-C18eRtXD3Xyuc68fwxddgozSfjx08JifpQc/s1600/emu+diorama,+milan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEDnK-oMy_YoJ1ZwVz2XF8BOdAQDvmqfPhF-gDsfLJLOJqsRte1ypiScFB_QgM6_s2xX3tMNtdiC_54EwqchwgQqQ5gyymn4Y3Y1_o-d1-C18eRtXD3Xyuc68fwxddgozSfjx08JifpQc/s1600/emu+diorama,+milan.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo from <a href="http://www.icgravellonatoce.gov.it/lavori/lavoro%20le%20foto%20raccontano2/Attivita.html">here</a>.</span></div>
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My family lived in Italy for a year when I was ten, and I used to love visiting the <a href="http://www.comune.milano.it/dseserver/webcity/Documenti.nsf/webHomePage?OpenForm&settore=MCOI-6C5J9V_HP">Museo Civico di Storia Naturale</a> in Milan. One of the highlights is their terrific collection of nature dioramas, made by <a href="http://www.fogato.com/">Valter Fogato</a> and others.<br />
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Having grown up in Ottawa, I was used to dioramas of Canadian wildlife, but Milan had dioramas of creatures from all over the world.<br />
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I didn't take any pictures of the dioramas myself, but I've been able to find a bunch here and there on the web.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIMwdjFfqpVB6tkiQBPjiQz5TuMJJnNHbRzHqrDTnly3w6owA0PJifQ5b1CHwowI772HIyhpc9fbHJI0b3ugzHd3RhZsWGnKe8W2h0_svz44JU2HphMHLZt-b2CQ8annSQNX1gOPSQcfU/s1600/guanaco.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIMwdjFfqpVB6tkiQBPjiQz5TuMJJnNHbRzHqrDTnly3w6owA0PJifQ5b1CHwowI772HIyhpc9fbHJI0b3ugzHd3RhZsWGnKe8W2h0_svz44JU2HphMHLZt-b2CQ8annSQNX1gOPSQcfU/s1600/guanaco.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo from <a href="http://www.fogato.com/diorami/elenco_diorami.html">here</a>.</span> </div>
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You don't often see dioramas of animals running. Perhaps this is because
one's first instinct would be to say that they wouldn't fit -- they
need space to run around in. But of course, at any particular instant in
its run cycle, the animal doesn't take up any more room than it does
when it's standing still. The running poses add real dynamism to this diorama of two guanacos.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq445bm0j7AExpmqA56ifDdcQ4c5UJEkTinZRflRqDlGQvnNhglhK2KDR2dHrxvygQtQY-DDficuY8ymd4nEZD7qUpSNLlgTv-4Fxsogxy7-2jBe60eAUrinLhentpxyBSxYxw5hHKK1o/s1600/aardvark.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq445bm0j7AExpmqA56ifDdcQ4c5UJEkTinZRflRqDlGQvnNhglhK2KDR2dHrxvygQtQY-DDficuY8ymd4nEZD7qUpSNLlgTv-4Fxsogxy7-2jBe60eAUrinLhentpxyBSxYxw5hHKK1o/s1600/aardvark.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo from <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCaLjD7UxGs">here</a>.</span></div>
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I wish I had a better picture of this diorama of an aardvark attacking a
termite mound (there's apparently an aardworf in the diorama as well).
It takes place at night, which looks really neat; you don't often see
that in dioramas either.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2ixZX9qatQ2-asKHvtj2YwW3AcS2XuM89n2CkUe6p1AK-ezipO4XFOgobFdnseKyezMCae0NBEl2jf2KD3a4Hn9BTNmz6VhQ2CiA4O63FmJd-oUeuFfyR2q-vhn8b94Q3ePseSKucr4g/s1600/barbary+sheep+milan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2ixZX9qatQ2-asKHvtj2YwW3AcS2XuM89n2CkUe6p1AK-ezipO4XFOgobFdnseKyezMCae0NBEl2jf2KD3a4Hn9BTNmz6VhQ2CiA4O63FmJd-oUeuFfyR2q-vhn8b94Q3ePseSKucr4g/s1600/barbary+sheep+milan.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo from <a href="http://www.thais.it/citta_italiane/Milano/MSN.html">here</a>.</span></div>
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I don't actually remember this diorama of barbary sheep and addax, but I
came across it while looking for pictures to use in this article. I
love how they've incorporated a replica of Saharan giraffe rock art; it's a subtle reminder of human presence.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYqjFneCwS8Cv4WJm_ThPw_R6Cp6TJWmEK_NHH1rpHRmoOBGzUYlH4_gXGY-a2YCYsN8f3-B93CwF5tykOjMBVb4j1T65W8LNwkhao-diJ5dkICuWFLUWazPVvkzI5wnIZ2q6yrKtylyA/s1600/grizzly.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYqjFneCwS8Cv4WJm_ThPw_R6Cp6TJWmEK_NHH1rpHRmoOBGzUYlH4_gXGY-a2YCYsN8f3-B93CwF5tykOjMBVb4j1T65W8LNwkhao-diJ5dkICuWFLUWazPVvkzI5wnIZ2q6yrKtylyA/s1600/grizzly.JPG" height="203" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo from <a href="http://www.fogato.com/diorami/elenco_diorami.html">here</a>.</span> </div>
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This diorama of grizzly bears catching salmon does a great job of conveying a frenzy of activity.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiALl-j9YxdA4GVk-JFYD3gjqCyKIQV4kHVyBpTpWGy5j9FkDazSOQw4NwYHc3Xqm_lN3G-A8PpjA5XHcTJThMVrD70rfnN5lBWHnHyaWChKOuvpoT7dEF4RoKlTi-nZjTSgozvIbDQkaw/s1600/muskox.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiALl-j9YxdA4GVk-JFYD3gjqCyKIQV4kHVyBpTpWGy5j9FkDazSOQw4NwYHc3Xqm_lN3G-A8PpjA5XHcTJThMVrD70rfnN5lBWHnHyaWChKOuvpoT7dEF4RoKlTi-nZjTSgozvIbDQkaw/s1600/muskox.jpg" height="212" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo from <a href="http://www.fogato.com/diorami/elenco_diorami.html">here</a>.</span></div>
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Many of the dioramas have two different species in them, like this one of a muskox and a caribou. This not only saves space, since one diorama can stand for two animals, but also gives the opportunity to depict interspecific behaviour.<br />
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Finally, here are a bunch more that I like, but don't have anything clever to say about:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrauELhXCB3Qsr4C7RociNetdFel0qh-F_pwHb33_T-iSZAkiljjwkA2vPCFoRKow9AwPj-VEyPMelO0lZOqgN7kJqwuAdlOBUDLj9iRuLCjNlEMTfaBfhpX8L2FDtjZc4XU2xBSATXCY/s1600/tiger.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrauELhXCB3Qsr4C7RociNetdFel0qh-F_pwHb33_T-iSZAkiljjwkA2vPCFoRKow9AwPj-VEyPMelO0lZOqgN7kJqwuAdlOBUDLj9iRuLCjNlEMTfaBfhpX8L2FDtjZc4XU2xBSATXCY/s1600/tiger.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Siberian tiger and sika deer. Photo from <a href="http://www.thais.it/citta_italiane/Milano/MSN.html">here</a>.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU5wAJ_J7wpReHVkKDIxE15BLqpxzjgdUxIlr48TrQWYvnUdxv2VRTBxX6n_F2B0qcF_VMv0BUgpCVQhKbsX1mM0m5wXgujSZKFoIw_f5pheflpG1dgMR3_5VZPvEzcFSe9ldb7D2FfLg/s1600/emu+milan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU5wAJ_J7wpReHVkKDIxE15BLqpxzjgdUxIlr48TrQWYvnUdxv2VRTBxX6n_F2B0qcF_VMv0BUgpCVQhKbsX1mM0m5wXgujSZKFoIw_f5pheflpG1dgMR3_5VZPvEzcFSe9ldb7D2FfLg/s1600/emu+milan.jpg" height="248" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Emu. Photo from <a href="http://www.thais.it/citta_italiane/Milano/MSN.html">here</a>.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDv39aGJWn6TozqeeJSSdqvxu1qEEjyVCWgY5dgH7CWN6ulU0fsy4kNnl27yzj1RNrf-1QCN2uihsIHJev07aANuMpR7H_l_i3jGxkR3stQQ721CN_8H-fG-BuoG8m1ySLGSuaP2WCJMo/s1600/narwhal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDv39aGJWn6TozqeeJSSdqvxu1qEEjyVCWgY5dgH7CWN6ulU0fsy4kNnl27yzj1RNrf-1QCN2uihsIHJev07aANuMpR7H_l_i3jGxkR3stQQ721CN_8H-fG-BuoG8m1ySLGSuaP2WCJMo/s1600/narwhal.jpg" height="185" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Narwhals and walrus. Photo from <a href="http://www.fogato.com/diorami/elenco_diorami.html">here</a>.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTTUIy1tAOTYA0ymSDXzr2TYYkTw8wpyurHu63C1b0N4Xf55c3PlqpdmJNlEhE1veU4BLj7eN5iEMke5As-AKVTQYgFDBjtFKQDeZz9dGbDOT3BC1qKZJ0xyUOToUgk1GXRsnteazk8dg/s1600/yak.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTTUIy1tAOTYA0ymSDXzr2TYYkTw8wpyurHu63C1b0N4Xf55c3PlqpdmJNlEhE1veU4BLj7eN5iEMke5As-AKVTQYgFDBjtFKQDeZz9dGbDOT3BC1qKZJ0xyUOToUgk1GXRsnteazk8dg/s1600/yak.jpg" height="252" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Yak. Photo from <a href="http://www.fogato.com/diorami/elenco_diorami.html">here</a>.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHCUVzIofRr_aACfBfQZ3rYu1ZiLeqnJYzLapShsYrFZKc-Zv3kT0QGpdzwWInuR-ET6SeKim_TaLov1vqqfh8PnRYpExujwqtnx80W_8KtUqPcKWTmIdH4Ms2ZwBbnmwQclniMv1P_7g/s1600/camel.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHCUVzIofRr_aACfBfQZ3rYu1ZiLeqnJYzLapShsYrFZKc-Zv3kT0QGpdzwWInuR-ET6SeKim_TaLov1vqqfh8PnRYpExujwqtnx80W_8KtUqPcKWTmIdH4Ms2ZwBbnmwQclniMv1P_7g/s1600/camel.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Bactrian camel. Photo from <a href="http://danielascarelart.blogspot.ca/2014/04/museo-civico-di-storia-naturale-milano_1594.html">here</a>.</span> </div>
Granthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-58378435127832745392015-01-16T08:11:00.001-08:002015-01-16T08:11:29.166-08:00"Life Through the Ages" VideosYou've got to love the <a href="https://www.nfb.ca/">National Film Board of Canada</a>. Not only do they have an enormous online library of their films, all viewable for free, but they also take requests for what they should upload next.<br />
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Naturally, I requested that they upload the two videos that used to play in the Canadian Museum of Nature's old fossil gallery, <a href="http://museumdreams.blogspot.com/2013/12/life-through-ages.html">Life Through the Ages</a>. It took them a while to get to them, but they did!<br />
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<iframe height="320" src="https://www.nfb.ca/film/origin_of_life_on_earth/embed/player" width="516"></iframe><br />
<div style="width: 516px;">
<a href="https://www.nfb.ca/film/origin_of_life_on_earth" target="_blank"><i>Origin of Life on Earth</i></a> by <a href="https://www.nfb.ca/explore-all-directors/kenneth-horn/" target="_blank" title="more films by Kenneth Horn">Kenneth Horn</a>, <a href="https://www.nfb.ca/" target="_blank">National Film Board of Canada</a></div>
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Here's <i>Origin of Life on Earth</i>, which used to play in English and French at the very beginning of the exhibit. It was made in 1972, so I'm guessing it was part of the exhibit when it opened in 1974, and it lasted until the museum was closed for renovations in 2004.<br />
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Watching the film as a kid, I didn't really understand what I was seeing. But I loved (and still love) the haunting music, which really set the tone for the rest of the exhibit.<br />
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<iframe height="320" src="https://www.nfb.ca/film/extinction_of_the_dinosaurs/embed/player" width="516"></iframe><br />
<div style="width: 516px;">
<a href="https://www.nfb.ca/film/extinction_of_the_dinosaurs" target="_blank"><i>Extinction of the Dinosaurs</i></a> by <a href="https://www.nfb.ca/explore-all-directors/paul-bochner/" target="_blank" title="more films by Paul Bochner">Paul Bochner</a>, <a href="https://www.nfb.ca/" target="_blank">National Film Board of Canada</a></div>
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The second film is <i>Extinction of the Dinosaurs</i>, which played just after you came back upstairs from the dinosaur room. It illustrates the then-current idea that the dinosaurs died because of a nearby supernova.<br />
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This video wasn't on display for nearly as long. It was made in 1976, so must have been added to the exhibit later. And it was removed sometime around 1988, I'm guessing because of mounting evidence for the asteroid impact hypothesis.<br />
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In our modern age of super-realistic CGI dinosaurs (which I like!), I miss seeing stylized, impressionistic animated dinosaurs. I'd love to see a modern film with dinosaurs, accurate to what we know now, animated in this style.Granthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-25404065515434486442014-06-11T10:35:00.001-07:002014-12-29T16:33:50.051-08:00TransitionThe Canada Hall at the Canadian Museum of Civilization has the formidable task of fitting a thousand years of Canadian history into a 43,558 square foot exhibit.<br />
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One of the hardest parts must have been designing the transitions between one environmental reconstruction and the next. A transition has to feel continuous and not abrupt, but still convey a sense of change so that all the environments don't bleed into one. It also needs to save space wherever it can. The very best are so subtle that you don't even notice them.<br />
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My favourite transition is here, between the Ontario Street and the Canadian Prairies.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/y8Gl4Eszi_M?rel=0" width="560"></iframe></div>
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Did you notice what they did? I didn't until last year.<br />
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Take a look at the furniture store on the Ontario Street, and the railway car in the Prairies.<br />
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They're the same object! It's just decorated differently on each side.<br />
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You don't notice because you're looking at the CPR ticket office and the Govan train station. This interrupts your perception of the object. By the time you turn back around, you're in the next streetscape already, so you don't perceive its continuity.<br />
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And if you do happen to look at the side of the object, they've got you covered there too:<br />
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This panel on the driving of the last spike slows you down, once again distracting you from noticing the transition. (I especially like this view because it's Ontario on one side and Saskatchewan on the other.)<br />
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And by making one object stand for two, they save space too.<br />
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If you like this sort of thing, check out the post "<a href="http://passport2dreams.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-awkward-transitions-of-disneyland.html">The Awkward Transitions of Disneyland!</a>" on the wonderfully detailed theme park blog <i>Passport to Dreams Old & New</i>. Theme parks were one of the reference points used by the Canada Hall's designers.Granthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-70608456547464306592014-06-06T12:29:00.001-07:002014-06-06T12:29:51.882-07:00Pterosaurs in the AtriumSpeaking of the <a href="http://museumdreams.blogspot.com/2014/04/totem-poles-in-atrium.html">Canadian Museum of Nature's atrium</a>: from 1999 to 2006, it was the home of two life-size sculptures of <i>Pteranodon</i> fighting over a fish.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRT86f3K55yV47OiY1t190zj_d5mvnrQIE-eFKQr13cEu_rNQAaPO4F5zKdKXmfWY7OwWe_g6Yh4L2AqnF39J-cHn1x_dQY-L73QOthDHqBLF5KQO8RffPnsX3D4he6aUGC1KGj8WxqzI/s1600/Pterosaurs.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRT86f3K55yV47OiY1t190zj_d5mvnrQIE-eFKQr13cEu_rNQAaPO4F5zKdKXmfWY7OwWe_g6Yh4L2AqnF39J-cHn1x_dQY-L73QOthDHqBLF5KQO8RffPnsX3D4he6aUGC1KGj8WxqzI/s1600/Pterosaurs.jpeg" height="320" width="209" /></a></div>
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I thought they were gone forever, but recently discovered that they now hang in a small, glass-walled building just behind the museum itself. I have no idea what this building is used for; does anybody know?<br />
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The pterosaurs were sculpted by Doug Watson (who also did the mammoth family in front of the museum) and Jean-Guy Auger. <a href="http://www.magma.ca/~watsondn/pteranodon.html">This page on Watson's website</a> has a ton of information and photos of the sculpting process. You can even buy your own copies of the miniatures he made while planning it out!<br />
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I don't know why they didn't put these guys back in the atrium after the renovations. There's nothing in there now except the admissions desk.<br />
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It's also too bad the pterosaurs were never there at the same time as the totem poles. That would have looked awesome.Granthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-23458376283610590972014-04-24T20:56:00.001-07:002014-04-24T20:59:04.201-07:00Totem Poles in the AtriumBefore the <a href="http://www.historymuseum.ca/">Canadian Museum of History</a> was called the Canadian Museum of History, it was called the Canadian Museum of Civilization. But before it was called the Canadian Museum of Civilization, it was called the National Museum of Man, and it shared the Victoria Memorial Museum Building with the <a href="http://nature.ca/">Canadian Museum of Nature</a> (then called the National Museum of Natural Sciences).<br />
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The two museums split up when I was four, so I only have vague memories of the way it used to be, and photographs from that era are nearly impossible to find. One thing I do remember is that there were totem poles in the atrium, but I can't remember any details about them.<br />
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But recently, two things happened. Firstly, I read <i>A Museum for the Global Village</i>, a fantastic book about the creation of the Museum of Civilization. It mentioned that among the many totem poles on display in the Grand Hall (a full-scale reconstruction of a composite Pacific Northwest Coast native village) were the very poles that had once stood in the VMMB's atrium. This should have been obvious -- it's not like they would throw them away! -- but it had never occurred to me.<br />
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The other thing that happened was that I finally found some pictures. These two photos come from the website of <a href="http://www.cuhaci.com/index.php/projects/heritage/134-victoria-memorial-museum">Edward J Cuhaci and Associates Architects Inc</a>, the architectural firm that restored the VMMB in the late sixties:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ8N11ElxMQONNyT2aF0dzLSVRQAOnLEJX4tLVfO4tSulMHroSNo6fTSriGhoZ6cl-9tpsonH1XPG0atS14f5I4O9z4ZTDzeNUZRZCTnYaKycEoq7BCItu8W7o5ZoypoLZaiFEpRMi9SQ/s1600/poles1(cuhaci.com).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ8N11ElxMQONNyT2aF0dzLSVRQAOnLEJX4tLVfO4tSulMHroSNo6fTSriGhoZ6cl-9tpsonH1XPG0atS14f5I4O9z4ZTDzeNUZRZCTnYaKycEoq7BCItu8W7o5ZoypoLZaiFEpRMi9SQ/s1600/poles1(cuhaci.com).jpg" height="320" width="244" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfGVl8YdvLCDb3D46MkzYlpwmfq0R4uj1p8rxChKG4q9zdVPuPgbrOgnOCNurkUECeGzZZMdzPUkyQob-FQCJ7EDT-s9LYyW9UNz09sEkDdR0LicLBrpE_Rek999vJJ8xNQiw2e2RGGzg/s1600/poles2(cuhaci.com).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfGVl8YdvLCDb3D46MkzYlpwmfq0R4uj1p8rxChKG4q9zdVPuPgbrOgnOCNurkUECeGzZZMdzPUkyQob-FQCJ7EDT-s9LYyW9UNz09sEkDdR0LicLBrpE_Rek999vJJ8xNQiw2e2RGGzg/s1600/poles2(cuhaci.com).jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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They clearly show three poles in the atrium, and enabled me to identify exactly which poles they were. Here are photos of those poles as they are today, accompanied by descriptions excerpted from <i>Raven's Village</i>, a guide to the Grand Hall published in 1995.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo-FzxSnNDYnAd-qlM_WglcIyqowNqkSh9tTDTrb8oPzsyBcHomVXt1qUmPEbn5sCbKTj0HBust12sqmtdGnljon2njf6ICWA1B2x7VIacFdPdjCcIy1k5w4BFfQNMjjkGKpvmigCMssY/s1600/DSC_0068b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo-FzxSnNDYnAd-qlM_WglcIyqowNqkSh9tTDTrb8oPzsyBcHomVXt1qUmPEbn5sCbKTj0HBust12sqmtdGnljon2njf6ICWA1B2x7VIacFdPdjCcIy1k5w4BFfQNMjjkGKpvmigCMssY/s1600/DSC_0068b.jpg" height="320" width="138" /></a><b>House Waiting for Property Pole (Haida):</b><br />
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"The two
figures at the base are Sus'an, mythical Sea Grizzly Bears. The lower
one is wearing a tall hat with six potlatch rings, or <i>skils</i>, on it, and has a doorway through his abdomen. These two figures relate the myth about a young man who displeased his mother-in-law because she found him lazy. ... The son-in-law is depicted on the pole above Sea Grizzly Bear, wearing his Sea Grizzly Bear skin and clasping <i>skils</i> in his arms. ...<br />
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Three Watchmen are depicted at the top of the pole. The two small human figures on the sides are wearing <i>skils</i>,
which were also worn by chiefs at potlatches. Each ring on the hat
might have indicated the number of potlatches a chief had held. The
central figure wears a hat sculpted in the shape of Killer Whale's fin.
The figures appear to be watching -- either for guests or for enemies.<br />
<br />
Below
the Watchmen is Eagle with a hooked beak, and between his wings in
Gunarh's wife. She is holding the dorsal fin of Killer Whale who, after
her death, took her soul down to the country of whales. The myth
describes how her husband tried to rescue her from the keepers of souls
that live in the undersea world. ...<br />
<br />
Below the woman's
feet are the stylized fins and upturned tail of Killer Whale. Next is
the face of the woman's husband, holding onto the head of Killer Whale.
This pole dates from around 1875, and it once stood in front of a
community house at Haina on an island near Skidegate." <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiUkYUpb_WVPSjta64-Q9iMpbBwFS035-T9-WIlyWTa21DulapgK8uU3kbdmnysy42ePAofs5I_waSNIjtnjg1rpWHb_p2ukd5-AzGJ-djXEiK0vpRxzJpR1MknIlpZdman_sVzzPrxLg/s1600/DSC_0006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiUkYUpb_WVPSjta64-Q9iMpbBwFS035-T9-WIlyWTa21DulapgK8uU3kbdmnysy42ePAofs5I_waSNIjtnjg1rpWHb_p2ukd5-AzGJ-djXEiK0vpRxzJpR1MknIlpZdman_sVzzPrxLg/s1600/DSC_0006.JPG" height="320" width="213" /></a></div>
<b>Howkan Village Pole (Kaigani Haida):</b><br />
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"The pole depicts the story of the great flood. At the top is White Raven, as he was before he flew out of the smoke hole while stealing light from Sky Chief. Below are a series of <i>skils</i> with four humans clinging to the sides. The <i>skils</i> are on the head of Qingi, the supernatural father of White Raven, who was raising a totem pole when a great flood struck the world. As the water rose, his guests and relatives scrambled up the pole to save themselves from drowning. White Raven alighted on top of the pole, causing it to grow into a gigantic tree filled with the survivors of the flood. Below Qingi's extended tongue is Sculpin, and at the base of the pole is Qingi holding a human upside down between his bear-like claws. This pole was collected in early 1900 by Lord Bossom, who had it lashed to the deck of a ship and taken around Cape Horn to England. It was returned to Canada in 1969."<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia6rxmfvcKJaPvy-58FPhODxIDDFu023p0QB-auE5u9S_eo2c1rieIyQNpQwsjRV018wViKZixSUE23x2mdhBa7EIhIIUFJc5WA3YtqZMOVcI8GLvOpm3vDhprwAJTJ1RBG2MlWItHVtc/s1600/DSC_0058b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia6rxmfvcKJaPvy-58FPhODxIDDFu023p0QB-auE5u9S_eo2c1rieIyQNpQwsjRV018wViKZixSUE23x2mdhBa7EIhIIUFJc5WA3YtqZMOVcI8GLvOpm3vDhprwAJTJ1RBG2MlWItHVtc/s1600/DSC_0058b.jpg" height="320" width="150" /></a><b>Kwaxsuu Pole (Nisga'a):</b><br />
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"[This] is a memorial pole that comes from the village of Angidah in the Nass River district and contains two grave boxes, although neither box actually contained human remains. The top box commemorates a chief who died in infancy, and has Grizzly Bear cub sitting on its lid. The lower box was put in place at the time when an important chief died; it has Wolf on its lid. Below the lower box is a face, representing a crest entitled Split Person. Grizzly Bear is next, holding a copper in his teeth, and at his feet is Bear cub, with his head pointing down. Another Grizzly Bear stands at the base of the pole, with a salmon in his mouth and a Bear cub between his legs. The Bear cub represents all the children of Grizzly Bear, and the faces on the Grizzly Bear's paws stand for the People of the Smoke Hole."<br />
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I also have this photo, of uncertain vintage:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9D2T8g_qQDqOE7-2QyET1bTAbZOV7bsznLrXQNG26p4Hxto9v80V6hqaFwKXY-uhhfP4xmPF8BFzRS7YIhQD5IQlgAIBiUS0T2k6__YL8wkoUBx8bOfMwKd1-m3Zl7ICMEfvJW2oGQb0/s1600/old_atrium.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9D2T8g_qQDqOE7-2QyET1bTAbZOV7bsznLrXQNG26p4Hxto9v80V6hqaFwKXY-uhhfP4xmPF8BFzRS7YIhQD5IQlgAIBiUS0T2k6__YL8wkoUBx8bOfMwKd1-m3Zl7ICMEfvJW2oGQb0/s1600/old_atrium.jpg" height="179" width="320" /></a></div>
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It's a screenshot from <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jc7SGOX-FA">this video</a> about the more recent renovation of the Museum of Nature. The Kwaxsuu Pole and House Waiting for Property Pole can be seen on the left and right, but between them are two smaller poles.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUoQAhbdnyWH2j1pZnHxBTmmEIl6cYeEPwBDNh-c8QIKbeFS02HU7IsPuX_KSlspcRoFocq6TrIy8M5SnCOBLDasmckLftCxODU3koDbNKARJlSfWEXBSEwX8JbeZspo4VE1ZR9PXdfZM/s1600/DSC_0028.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUoQAhbdnyWH2j1pZnHxBTmmEIl6cYeEPwBDNh-c8QIKbeFS02HU7IsPuX_KSlspcRoFocq6TrIy8M5SnCOBLDasmckLftCxODU3koDbNKARJlSfWEXBSEwX8JbeZspo4VE1ZR9PXdfZM/s1600/DSC_0028.JPG" height="320" width="213" /></a><b>Chief Qomoqua's Pole (Nuxalk):</b><br />
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"At the top of this pole is the blue face of the elusive supernatural Qomoqua, ruler of the undersea mythical creatures. On his head he wears Killer Whale ears that form a circular curl on each side. Beneath him is Owl; then comes Eagle, holding a disc in his claws. On the disc is the face of Chief Qomoqua, who commissioned the pole, and at the base is another image of his namesake, the supernatural Qomoqua. Legend says that people who are caught in whirlpools are carried down to Qomoqua's house below the sea."<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit6NuzWYzJdvd8XkW3V02BIKLyhsBSslbIYY4Mr0ViD3Ob29-KPEuKxgLeeuuRjnKvbP3nWhzG2sf0AlesJZLg4KKeDr0kPSD9UBW8MvmprLnwsvAQBhGuXEXCKLjRRzhGmpTg-oJpQhY/s1600/DSC_0037.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit6NuzWYzJdvd8XkW3V02BIKLyhsBSslbIYY4Mr0ViD3Ob29-KPEuKxgLeeuuRjnKvbP3nWhzG2sf0AlesJZLg4KKeDr0kPSD9UBW8MvmprLnwsvAQBhGuXEXCKLjRRzhGmpTg-oJpQhY/s1600/DSC_0037.JPG" height="320" width="213" /></a><b>Tallio Village Pole (Nuxalk):</b><br />
<br />
"The disc represents Sun, with Eagle or Thunderbird perched on the top. Below the disc is the mythical Cannibal Bird, Giant Sharp Nose Man Eater at the North End of the World, whose ashes turned into mosquitoes when he was burned to death. Immediately below his down-turned lips is Beaver, and beneath him is the broad smiling face of an unidentified supernatural being. At the base is another face, with a sharp nose and a wide-open mouth, which was once used as the entrance to a house."<br />
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Here's a photo showing where all these poles are in the Grand Hall if you want to see them for yourself.<br />
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If you have any photos of the old Museum of Man, please let us know in the comments! <br />
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<b>Sources:</b><br />
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MacDonald, G.F., and Alsford, S. 1989. <i>A Museum for the Global Village: The Canadian Museum of Civilization.</i> Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull. 235 pp.<br />
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Ruddell, N. 1995. <i>Raven's Village: The Myths, Arts and Traditions of Native People from the Pacific Northwest Coast: Guide to the Grand Hall, Canadian Museum of Civilization.</i> Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull. 53 pp.<b> </b><br />
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Granthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-4054497530151407802014-01-28T14:18:00.000-08:002014-01-28T14:20:26.563-08:00The Sparrow Drawer<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The sandhill crane today. He no longer welcomes you to the exhibit, but he's still dancing. Photograph taken by me.</span></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I love poetry. There's no art form that's better at conveying what it <i>felt</i> like to be in a certain place at a certain time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">With that in mind, here is "The Sparrow Drawer" by Canadian poet Diana Brebner, from her posthumous poetry collection <i>The Ishtar Gate</i>. The poem takes place in the old bird exhibit at the Canadian Museum of Nature. Most of the displays she describes no longer exist. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">The Sparrow Drawer</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">I. The
Sandhill Crane</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">The sandhill crane, in his glass case, performs</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">his nuptial dance. Jumping, bowing, and wildly</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">flapping, reads the museum description. Well,</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">aren't we all the same in love? This dead</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">male is frozen in the pose, on a bed of</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">stone. Thus, the museum welcomes us to its</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">permanent exhibit: <i>Birds in Canada</i>. When I</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">bring my daughters to the museum, because</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">it is cleaner and easier than a day in the</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">bush, they always ask to see the birds, or the</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">big animals. And I tell myself: this will</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">do them good. They know enough about mud,</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">rain, being hungry, no toilets, and wanting</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">to go home. In the real world, a bird is</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">always gone before my two-year-old can look.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Or, alternately, I can never find the great</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">blue herons they insist are really there.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">II. Birds
by Number</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">In the <i>Eastern
Hardwood Forest</i> thirty-three birds</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">are mounted on log pedestals, each in a pose</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">that is meant to be life-like. I remind myself</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">these are dead bodies. I have no memory for</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">useful things, but I can remember my first</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">sighting of migrating snowbirds (Junco hyemalis)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">in Algonquin Park, the Rose-breasted Grosbeaks</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">at the feeders near the cabin, the enormous</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">black and white Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">pileatus) with its blood-red crest, up near the</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">cliffs at Luskville. I can tell you where, and</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">who was with me, down a great-list of the birds</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">I believed forgotten. My daughters learn birds</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">by numbers, matching a numbered body with a</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">name on a list, given in three languages, as if</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">that will make them real. The fact is, my girls</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">enjoy this. They call them doll-birds. And the</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">bird names are repeated solemnly, as if each</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">name were part of a spell. And I do it too.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">For who can say this is not reverence, a litany,</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">a prayer, a wish for something promised. The</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">name of one woman who died finds its way to</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">the list, and I remember my first sighting of a</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"> rare
old man I loved.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">III. The
Sparrow Drawer</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">It is time for us to be leaving; somehow we find</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">ourselves before one final display. It is the same</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">forest, rearranged by seasons, and including</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">the ducks, herons, owls, and hawks, that are</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">familiar to <i>The
Forest</i>, as they call the example of</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">hardwood forest that is local, and ours. And then,</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">beneath the glass cases, my eldest daughter finds</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">two drawers. Above them a simple label reads:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Would you like to know more about birds? How</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">many times did I bring that other child to this</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">place? We never found these boxes. And they</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">are not hidden, merely unexpected. The first</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">lights up as we pull it out. Eggs. Large and</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">small. Blue, green, mottled beige, brown. Great</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">white goose eggs, the hummingbird's egg glowing,</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">a white pearl, all in rows, labeled, an old child's
collection.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">And the second drawer opens quietly, and as easily</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">as the first, lights up, displays its contents.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">This is the sparrow drawer. No-one has gone to any</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">trouble to make this look pretty. Dead sparrows</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">lie in an uneven row, their bodies in disarray,</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">frozen on snow, which is also synthetic batting,</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">with black plastic arrowheads stuck in strategic</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">areas to accentuate their differences. The caption</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">tells us: all sparrows look alike to the untrained</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">eye. They are difficult to tell apart in the field.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Chipping Sparrow. Savannah Sparrow. Lincoln's
Sparrow.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Song Sparrow. Swamp Sparrow. And alone, beneath</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">the line of identical bodies, a Pine Siskin, just</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">to show us how even one species can be mistaken for</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">another. And what have I seen hovering in a field?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">I could swear it was the child I have lost. Love</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">I have learned the hard way; how many hovering boys</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">in schoolyards look just like him. Of course, I
don't</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">want to see this, or the dead birds, and I close</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">the drawer. But my girls will not leave it alone.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">They open it. I close it. They cry. So, we open it</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">again. We say the names of the different sparrows.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">I tell them that any creature, once named, cannot</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">be forgotten. This, I believe. You see, there are</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">no numbers there, only names. The Pine Siskin
trembles</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">at the bottom of the drawer, as we roll it shut.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Source:</b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Brebner, D. 2005. </span><i><span style="font-size: small;">The Ishtar Gate: La</span>st and Selected Poems</i>, ed. Stephanie Bolster. <span dir="ltr">McGill-Queen's University Press, Montreal. 192 pp. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihoosGG8Rbu_Y8pCQJS7QmqhwwxX4nrQMnKJD2w1aSJducLQi_xfW3R90a0TRHCFL4zcriK0c8vg8V_WheZ7KX_Y1RbRbL-gGpLE8PHJJtSm5oqIoty5h410kgXiNfMaDdrF3_usCL3jc/s1600/cmn-geese.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihoosGG8Rbu_Y8pCQJS7QmqhwwxX4nrQMnKJD2w1aSJducLQi_xfW3R90a0TRHCFL4zcriK0c8vg8V_WheZ7KX_Y1RbRbL-gGpLE8PHJJtSm5oqIoty5h410kgXiNfMaDdrF3_usCL3jc/s1600/cmn-geese.JPG" height="319" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">These Canada geese were mounted on the ceiling of the old bird exhibit, and surrounded by mirrors that made it look like there were a lot more than there really were. Prints of this picture are <a href="http://www.ebay.com/itm/519097-Canadian-Museum-Nature-Canada-Geese-A4-Photo-Print-/271179447380?pt=UK_art_prints_GL&hash=item3f238dfc54">for sale on eBay</a>.</span></span></div>
Granthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-37703862939138128752014-01-18T18:12:00.000-08:002014-01-23T10:31:50.395-08:00AMNH Digital Special CollectionsI recently discovered an incredible resource on the website of the American Museum of Natural History: the<a href="http://images.library.amnh.org/digital/"> Digital Special Collections</a>.<br />
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It's a browsable and searchable archive of thousands of images from the museum's library: technical illustrations, photos from museum expeditions, and -- most dear to my heart -- photographs of long-gone exhibits and of exhibits under construction.<br />
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Here are two of my favourites. The information I've provided comes from a terrific book about the AMNH called <i>Dinosaurs in the Attic</i>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghWdNM41uvcVMM6IoQ2L8ndLG_IcZkqFabRlB_cV0dbec10kqbt0_m7g1kC5vIuOddsHcnYWgzthR16JT9NG4t_w0RKAui7QbrRmKkqdmUu8lBFwJMsrn8W73BfOg2sxY4QpJ549ss3Ks/s1600/Stage+13+of+mounting+a+skeleton,+AMNH.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghWdNM41uvcVMM6IoQ2L8ndLG_IcZkqFabRlB_cV0dbec10kqbt0_m7g1kC5vIuOddsHcnYWgzthR16JT9NG4t_w0RKAui7QbrRmKkqdmUu8lBFwJMsrn8W73BfOg2sxY4QpJ549ss3Ks/s1600/Stage+13+of+mounting+a+skeleton,+AMNH.jpg" height="260" width="320" /></a></div>
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This is a skeleton in the process of being mounted by the great osteologist Samuel Harmstead Chubb. It's the last mount he completed before he died in 1949: a donkey turning his neck to nibble at botfly eggs on his hind leg. Chubb is mounting the skeleton using his system of suspending each bone from a scaffold and making tiny adjustments until it's in exactly the right position.<br />
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<a href="http://liquidnight.tumblr.com/post/3082002811/nina-leen-dr-s-h-chubb-osteologist-at-the">Here's</a> a photo from the <i>Life Magazine</i> archives of Chubb with the nearly-completed mount.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyacKXsgKUfBKcIjb2JrAB2lREU_zEpTn7_Y3664toNjrRyeSfg6x3_GQ2mHrjyWu6pbOyVExfm_is83JM0MCjH5_0ZZ1Vmm4S2nbvq5WSmdG3inhL6VUtQVBH5GH54ioQ5Xck5SR7dhM/s1600/Final+installation,+Weaver+Bird+Exhibit,+Biology+of+Birds+Hall,+AMNH.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyacKXsgKUfBKcIjb2JrAB2lREU_zEpTn7_Y3664toNjrRyeSfg6x3_GQ2mHrjyWu6pbOyVExfm_is83JM0MCjH5_0ZZ1Vmm4S2nbvq5WSmdG3inhL6VUtQVBH5GH54ioQ5Xck5SR7dhM/s1600/Final+installation,+Weaver+Bird+Exhibit,+Biology+of+Birds+Hall,+AMNH.jpg" height="320" width="257" /></a></div>
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This is a social weaver bird nest in the final stage of installation in the Biology of Birds Hall. A whole flock of these birds will collectively build one huge thatched nest, and add to it each year. This particular nest -- as well as the crown of the acacia tree it was built in -- was collected in South Africa in 1925 by ornithologist Herbert Friedmann.<br />
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There are plenty more images to be discovered. <a href="http://images.library.amnh.org/digital/">Go explore!</a></div>
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<b>Source:</b><br />
Preston, D.J. 1986. <i>Dinosaurs in the Attic: An Excursion Into the American Museum of Natural History.</i> Ballantine Books, New York, 308 pp.Granthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-6820351498317269862014-01-07T13:45:00.003-08:002016-01-03T16:10:53.398-08:00Making History<i>Posted on behalf of Andrew, whose account isn't set up yet.</i><br />
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<span class="null">The <a href="http://www.civilization.ca/">Canadian Museum of Civilization website</a> now says history.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkPVgjN4zpH-gkLwfyV1jQebyK3XOpnNvTn7lWHPFr5gnOhNbjk0SXYzJnux6d-5mOE7Q_xxnPY3XizhkaZjkKd5ys0E-HHLPNAY09z4uWpbGQSQ0k7d2NFJVrLDsOkCJi-HBycEPdheg/s1600/old.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkPVgjN4zpH-gkLwfyV1jQebyK3XOpnNvTn7lWHPFr5gnOhNbjk0SXYzJnux6d-5mOE7Q_xxnPY3XizhkaZjkKd5ys0E-HHLPNAY09z4uWpbGQSQ0k7d2NFJVrLDsOkCJi-HBycEPdheg/s1600/old.png" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg18dXVWQMI4Ogn1nSHzrZPKP1w9BuBFfrILuab8S707nJHCplNiYmV99FyyWYArNhHKGKu9ElPfwHugbIrMMsCjriShP6D-FbFKnkIbJATH00Z850BhpXEcWV8nLrU8n-SZGVpmxZ7nV0/s1600/newlogo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg18dXVWQMI4Ogn1nSHzrZPKP1w9BuBFfrILuab8S707nJHCplNiYmV99FyyWYArNhHKGKu9ElPfwHugbIrMMsCjriShP6D-FbFKnkIbJATH00Z850BhpXEcWV8nLrU8n-SZGVpmxZ7nV0/s1600/newlogo.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span class="null">On this 7th day of January, the 2000th and 13th year of the Common Era, the Canadian Museum of Civilization no longer exists.</span></div>
Granthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081164141472405220.post-36951514156731567642013-12-27T14:37:00.000-08:002013-12-27T14:37:59.290-08:00Life Through the Ages<div style="text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWKgkmR9mtr-VRJcSXFiJU7v6vpJBVSIf1Wdl6xoNb1XhOYoOvXY0MTtdL8Z4AixNo25a4pYYWgYywjTiQ4WDlq-M2X6u6YibnaDfzptlNcpnn9U_3ETFAJ8OqrvMtKa_C_bZyFKiB3EM/s1600/cmn-streetsign.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWKgkmR9mtr-VRJcSXFiJU7v6vpJBVSIf1Wdl6xoNb1XhOYoOvXY0MTtdL8Z4AixNo25a4pYYWgYywjTiQ4WDlq-M2X6u6YibnaDfzptlNcpnn9U_3ETFAJ8OqrvMtKa_C_bZyFKiB3EM/s320/cmn-streetsign.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">The logo of the old "Life Through the Ages" exhibit was frequently used to represent the museum itself, and still remains on direction signs in Ottawa. Photograph taken by me.</span></div>
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I thought I'd inaugurate this blog with a reproduction of an article about the creation of "Life Through the Ages", the old fossil gallery at the <a href="http://nature.ca/">Canadian Museum of Nature</a> (or the National Museum of Natural Sciences, as it was called at the time). This is the exhibit that I grew up with in the 80s and 90s, and I loved it.<br />
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The article was written by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asoka_Weerasinghe">Asoka Weerasinghe</a>, one of the chief people behind the creation of the exhibit, and ran in the February 1999 issue of the <i>Ottawa Paleontological Society Newsletter</i>, following a talk he gave at a meeting of the Society on January 13. The editor of the newsletter was Robert Sensenstein. <br />
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This is reproduced without permission, but as far as I know this information has never been published anywhere else, and it deserves to be more widely known. The only reason I have a copy of this obscure publication is that I was a member of that Society, and indeed was at that talk!<br />
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The full citation is:<br />
Weerasinghe, Asoka. 1999. Creating the Dinosaur Hall (Life Through the Ages) at the Victoria Memorial Museum in Ottawa, Canada (1970-1974). <i>Ottawa Paleontological Society Newsletter</i> 8(2): 2-7.<br />
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I've added some photos of the exhibit as it used to be. Images from that era are hard to come by!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLB6T4MMPoEqY_lSabVmgPsfVA18NqsM8sN3v7zPJScENo1srLEt_h9YgHf6iLSiJ1EoPFbL5OWAa_OGLBCIPUI37rIlQBCLB5QsjCcpvqPEy88oeB0K7_1gKKgeWBmQl0KuXxBBZQVPk/s1600/daspletosaurus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLB6T4MMPoEqY_lSabVmgPsfVA18NqsM8sN3v7zPJScENo1srLEt_h9YgHf6iLSiJ1EoPFbL5OWAa_OGLBCIPUI37rIlQBCLB5QsjCcpvqPEy88oeB0K7_1gKKgeWBmQl0KuXxBBZQVPk/s320/daspletosaurus.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Daspletosaurus</i> in the old dinosaur hall, with wall mounts of <i>Anchiceratops</i> and <i>Dromiceiomimus</i> in the background. All three of these skeletons are also in the new fossil gallery. Image from <a href="http://animal.discovery.com/dinosaurs/daspletosaurus.htm">Animal Planet</a>.</span></div>
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<b>Creating the Dinosaur Hall (Life Through the Ages) at the Victoria Memorial Museum in Ottawa, Canada (1970-1974)</b><br />
by Asoka Weerasinghe (former Head, Thematic Research Section, Design and Display Division, National Museums Corporation of Canada, Ottawa, Canada.)<br />
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I got involved in creating this Hall only in November 1970. I believe that the Museum was closed to the public sometime in 1969, with a public announcement that it would be opened to the public with brand new exhibits in one year. I don't think that the then Museum's managers had a clue as to how long it would take to design, fabricate and install a major Museum Gallery.<br />
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What was important to remember is that Canada was exposed to innovative design concepts at EXPO-67. So the powers-to-be at the National Museums Corporation at that time wanted nothing inferior in design as to what they had seen in Montreal in 1967. So it was logical for them to hire Tom Wood, who himself was an artist and designer, and the Manager of the Canada Pavilion at EXPO-67 in Montreal as well as the Canada Pavilion in Osaka, Japan in 1970, as the Chief of Design and Display for this project.<br />
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When he couldn't find any paleontologist with some sympathy to design in Canada, he found me through my Prof (Ward Neale) at Memorial University, Newfoundland, to guide the story line and design to create the Dinosaur Hall. By then I had returned to my old job as a Geologist with an engineering firm (Low, Parsons & Brown) in Watford, Hertfordshire, in England, after having handed over my Master's Thesis, in May 1970. It so happened that I was a liberal scientist, being a published poet, artist, and sculptor, and the only graduate student who wanted to work in a Museum, while all my colleagues wanted to go to the field as economic geologists, to the oil fields, et cetera. So I was brought over from London, England, to do the job.<br />
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As you are aware the two scientists who were responsible for the content of the Hall were Dale Russell and Dick Harrington. And they had a team of preparators of the vertebrate fossil specimens, headed by Hank Shearman, who passed away from a heart attack before the Hall was opened. He was succeeded by Danis who was his assistant at the time. I believe he joined the Drumheller Museum later. The designer who was chosen to design this particular Hall was Alan Todd, a bright young graduate form the Ontario College of Art. He is now the Chief designer for the National Gallery in Ottawa. The Chief of Design was Jacques St. Cyr, who by the way designed the maple leaf in the Canadian flag. Unfortunately, Tom and Jacques are no longer with us today.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifIcwkE7zQ-PUH-eGQdwU0N5bhWg-sRcOlDkxcWCbRTY9WvCNy_5UHo-rft7hcqBR1evu-zFzA_ZBrNsHCyUN7_8oFOrP4mtnckMkWevV6K7EcHhyNdhuOflZKdJ_B_ARQzKLcYYa9760/s1600/coelophysis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifIcwkE7zQ-PUH-eGQdwU0N5bhWg-sRcOlDkxcWCbRTY9WvCNy_5UHo-rft7hcqBR1evu-zFzA_ZBrNsHCyUN7_8oFOrP4mtnckMkWevV6K7EcHhyNdhuOflZKdJ_B_ARQzKLcYYa9760/s320/coelophysis.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Panel mount of <i>Coelophysis</i> in the section leading up to the dinosaur hall itself. Photograph taken by me, and featuring my fingers.</span></div>
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<b>CREATING THE HALL FROM SCRATCH</b><br />
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The complete budget for this Hall was $600,000. This included the salaries of the contractual staff, design, building the infrastructure, fabrication and the installation of exhibits, which also included the audio-visual components. The monies weren't sufficient even then, but we had to do our best with what were given to us.<br />
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At the early conceptual stages of designing the Hall, it was essential that the scientists (Russell/Harrington) and the designers (St. Cyr/Todd) understand and agree as to the function of a Museum, because this was the first time that all of them had been involved in creating a major Museum Hall. This was to enable them to establish their joint responsibility, to interrelate their separate roles and interests, to produce what is expected of a good Museum design.<br />
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So what was agreed on was that - a Museum is generally accepted as a permanent, non-profit institution, essentially educational or aesthetic in purpose, with a professional staff, which acquires objects, cares for them, and exhibits them to the public at some regular schedule. A Museum among other things was agreed to be a communications system, with the dominant aim of disseminating knowledge, mainly through exhibitions. This formula was applied then, 25 years ago, and perhaps these concepts may have changed or evolved during the past 25 years to meet the intellectual and fiscal challenges.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidvf2UF9dvaIsQxGKxSGKAfNcz_Pudcv6lyhLqvzM0gyahYXmJUyOrKkEI9pqcpc8-qgSAng0fDqzdXvzaVLOXxniZ_LoTZIZD8enFo2NqAkr1ucP0Y0pFvMcfSyuHqNpeIxZgZM5PhMY/s1600/dinosaurhall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidvf2UF9dvaIsQxGKxSGKAfNcz_Pudcv6lyhLqvzM0gyahYXmJUyOrKkEI9pqcpc8-qgSAng0fDqzdXvzaVLOXxniZ_LoTZIZD8enFo2NqAkr1ucP0Y0pFvMcfSyuHqNpeIxZgZM5PhMY/s320/dinosaurhall.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">The old dinosaur hall. Image from </span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://www.cuhaci.com/index.php/projects/heritage/134-victoria-memorial-museum">Edward J Cuhaci and Associates Architects Inc</a>. </span></div>
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<b>WHY AN EXHIBITION?</b><br />
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The next question that needed an answer and an understanding was - Why an exhibition? What was concluded was that it is a device employed by Museums to impart knowledge, and also a vehicle to accomplish the obligation of giving back to the public in an interpretive form what has been discovered during their daily museological functions of collecting, preserving, and researching. And it was established that to execute a good Museum design, Drs. Russell and Harrington, and designer Todd should acknowledge the above terms of reference of the functions of a Museum.<br />
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And thus far, my role as the Head of Thematic Research was to be the man-in-between. To see that the design will interpret the science informatively and without an over-kill by the designer who might have an inclination to do his own thing, nor let the research scientist try to incorporate everything that he wishes to say without letting the design interpret the science to the layman. So appointing me as Head of Thematic Research brought about a happy medium. The designers felt that I could understand their language well and with a lot of sympathy, and the scientists knew that I would not let them down, since I had gone through the apprenticeship in their camps as a research paleontologist myself. My specialty was Ordovician trilobites.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH0iSkCitt_xZhZw5NH-JPkzopHIUFztaYBmUHBHhes4ZsMIZCg5IsBG8leEWyFDEsdd2PAoJ5dNg2YKlqnZC03_QugpFKCISHvc2cNYvSBRgNNTMXYu6UgLB_jORtVwjAP6MR8dcxCBQ/s1600/smilodon.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH0iSkCitt_xZhZw5NH-JPkzopHIUFztaYBmUHBHhes4ZsMIZCg5IsBG8leEWyFDEsdd2PAoJ5dNg2YKlqnZC03_QugpFKCISHvc2cNYvSBRgNNTMXYu6UgLB_jORtVwjAP6MR8dcxCBQ/s320/smilodon.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Smilodon</span></i><span style="font-size: x-small;"> in the Ice Age section of the exhibit. Prints of this picture are <a href="http://www.ebay.com/itm/519093-Canadian-Museum-Nature-Saber-toothed-Tiger-A4-Photo-Print-/400448317902?pt=UK_art_prints_GL&hash=item5d3c9469ce">for sale on eBay</a>.</span></div>
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<b>WHAT IS A GOOD MUSEUM DESIGN?</b><br />
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The next question that needed to be answered and understood was - What is a good Museum design? This we concluded was a design which had a built-in functionalism in the basic architecture, a built-in flexibility in design so that it would be able to adapt to the changing media, and also have a smooth visitor 'flow-pattern' throughout the Dinosaur Hall. It was also agreed that the exhibits should have an attracting and holding power; must stimulate the imagination; allow the viewer to respond and interact with the object, whether be it by sight, sound, smell, or touch; and also change with the changing times.<br />
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We also concluded that the initial impetus for a good Museum exhibit should always come from the scientist. This, we agreed, will provide the preparatory force for the designer to produce a good Museum design. This was to be accomplished by producing a clear, scientific "approach paper" for the designer, who will then study the proposed theme and the subject matter. This approach paper was prepared without reference to the exhibit design, as the scientist was not the designer nor should he pretend to be one. This approach paper we agreed should describe ideals of the scientific intent for the design. It was agreed that the treatment in the approach paper will have sufficient depth to serve as a source of information for the designer, and not to exceed 30 typed pages, depending on the subject and type of the proposed exhibit.<br />
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At this stage I, as Head of Thematic Research, and the researcher for the Hall, sat with the designer to explain to him the science in the approach paper in a layman's term and discussing with the designer the methods in the parameter of design, was best suited to interpret this science. So it was now that the designer was able to produce an initial visual response, with ideas of possible methods of treatment to interpret the subjects within the science of paleontology.<br />
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These visual methods focused on the museum objects that were to be displayed. The deeper the immersion and understanding of the theme and the subject matter outlined in the approach paper by the designer, the more imaginative and original the visual response happened to be. In fact I went through the exercise of teaching Paleontology 100 to the designer. And this exercise wasn't alien to me as I had taught Paleontology 100 to a class of 120 students at Memorial University. Todd needed that basic knowledge to come up with a good overall design.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6hlN856yUdPb575ZceNJIDrQ0MIQ1mgXsMC42t0W_dU-sW6oB8ewPNDcWxCZ1ad4ncKWmUctW_7Afkw7C4v2RoAMNezRJZMHS5b8grD-77LjHGaQtAiNErBEOEBpyVOen6MJ3iRPxgD4/s1600/hypacrosaurus2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6hlN856yUdPb575ZceNJIDrQ0MIQ1mgXsMC42t0W_dU-sW6oB8ewPNDcWxCZ1ad4ncKWmUctW_7Afkw7C4v2RoAMNezRJZMHS5b8grD-77LjHGaQtAiNErBEOEBpyVOen6MJ3iRPxgD4/s320/hypacrosaurus2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Hypacrosaurus</span></i><span style="font-size: x-small;"> in the old dinosaur hall. This skeleton is in the new fossil gallery too. Prints of this picture are <a href="http://www.ebay.com/itm/519092-Canadian-Museum-Nature-Duck-billed-Dinosaur-A4-Photo-Print-/271179447269?pt=UK_art_prints_GL&hash=item3f238dfbe5">for sale on eBay</a>.</span><b><br /></b></div>
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<b>LIFE THROUGH THE AGES</b><br />
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Once the possibility of a good Museum design was realized by designer Todd, Russell and Harrington, together with my contribution arrived at a definitive story line for a valid and balanced scientific story with a continuum throughout the Hall, which was given a title - Life Through the Ages. It so happened that I came up with the title not knowing that there was a book with the same title. So it was a question to find out whether the title was copyrighted, and it so happened that it wasn't, which cleared us to keep the proposed title.<br />
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So this definitive story line was based on the approach paper submitted by the scientists Dale Russell and Dick Harrington, and developed in unison with the exhibits that were being prepared by Hank Shearman and his colleagues at the paleontology laboratory, and the design was tied closely to the exhibits. The Paleontology Division was situated at Woodward Avenue in the west end, and the designers worked from 39 McArthur Avenue in Vanier, which is now the home of the Canadian National Geographic Society. It is at this point that the artifacts and specimens and graphic details were introduced.<br />
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So it should be clear now that the story line was based on the approach paper (written by Russell/Harrington) and developed in unison with the proposed exhibits (that were being prepared in the paleontology workshop and lab which was located then in the west end) and design, and tied close to it. At this point we saw the evolution of the intended interpretation of the scientific information to be conveyed in the exhibit to the public, and its methods of interpretation. And it is at this point that the artifacts, specimens, and graphic details are introduced into the design.<br />
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You may wonder when will the Director of the Museum get involved in the creation of the Hall. The Museum Director then was Dr. Louis Lemieux, who is no longer with us. He was brief with the progress of the evolution of the Hall, whenever we felt that he should be aware of the on going events.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Robert Bakker's drawing of <i>Daspletosaurus</i>. This picture can be just barely seen on the exhibit label in the second photo from the top. Image from <a href="http://paleoartistry.webs.com/1970s.htm">Paleoartistry</a>.</span><b> </b><br />
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<b>THE EXHIBITS</b></div>
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The exhibits were all well controlled by me as the Head of Thematic Research, and approved<b> </b>for the factual content by Russell and Harrington. And if we felt that we needed some external expertise, then we would approach a paleontologist or even a palaeobotanist outside the Museum. The botanical graphics were controlled by a Museum botanist, Albert Dugal, who was responsible for the Plant Life Hall. Robert Bakker was contracted to do the Dinosaur drawings which were made up as backlit transparencies. He was paid $250 for each rendering, which I could easily put a dollar value of a $1000 for each rendering now. The Museum of Nature should have the original renderings in its holdings somewhere. The colour transparency of Triceratops was done by artist Ely Kish. The original of this rendering too should be in the Museum's art inventory.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh5-N7v5Ku0GD7TjJOfvWPsMbL950T29DoWEK7EpdPOzqu1S5eD4yH9ZZdXT_C0LaIUWg-987U8YB4UsLd37-MoiNkxd0Da0ITHOgSRkzInrWBojjwKCViFDuonNNuqFnowlHc0lxprNk/s1600/kish-triceratops.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh5-N7v5Ku0GD7TjJOfvWPsMbL950T29DoWEK7EpdPOzqu1S5eD4yH9ZZdXT_C0LaIUWg-987U8YB4UsLd37-MoiNkxd0Da0ITHOgSRkzInrWBojjwKCViFDuonNNuqFnowlHc0lxprNk/s320/kish-triceratops.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Ely Kish's painting of <i>Triceratops</i>. Image from <a href="http://www.postcrossing.com/postcards/NL-1414935">Postcrossing</a>.</span></div>
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<b>THE MUSEUM AS AN EDUCATOR</b><br />
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Next we had to deal with another very important aspect in interpreting the specimens that would be incorporated in the Dinosaur Hall. We all agreed that a Museum among other things was a school, a university, or a research institute; that is, its product is education - human learning. The Halls filled with museological objects were indeed silent teachers, increasing the knowledge of those who visit it.<br />
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So, we realized that to interpret a museum object or specimen to the public required a form of communication which was by the late 60s, early 70s had not yet been fully understood or developed by the majority of Museum Interpreters.<br />
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As a cardinal rule, it was important for us as Museum interpreters to acknowledge the universality of education, thus making a conscious decision not to insult the visitor by speaking down during the obvious process - interpretation.<br />
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At this point we had to arrive at a consensus as to what educational level that we should focus when writing interpretive texts for the specimens, et cetera. And we agreed that all the texts should be written at a Grade 10 level. So that is what you see on the walls and panels. Another aspect that bothered me, having lived in England for 12 years, and before that having been taught the English language by the British colonial masters in Ceylon (now known as Sri Lanka), was my introduction to the Americanization of the English usage and spelling. There was no consistency in spelling of words, and at that time there wasn't a Canadian-English dictionary. When this question was imposed by me to the two Directors of the Museum of Natural Sciences (Dr. Lemieux) as well as the Museum of Man (Dr. Bill Taylor), they wanted me to use the Oxford English Dictionary as my guide.<br />
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There were other parameters that we had to accept to make the exercise in writing interpretive texts a success. They were, (1) for a Museum object which also happens to be a paleontological specimen, to communicate well to the visitor it should cause excitement, curiosity, surprise, provide a personal sense of discovery, and if possible, when interpreted should be timeless. 2) That the interpretation of information of the object should not be piecemeal or disjoint, leaving the major burden on the visitor to correlate that date visually or intellectually to make it meaningful. 3) Where appropriate, the interpreter should communicate his or her knowledge of the object so as to allow the visitor to do his or her own interpreting. 4) It is inadequate only to identify the object, but we must strive to relate its significance to us, to the environment, or to our past, and give it a meaning. 5) The visitor should not be given an opportunity to question, discover, and form some of their own opinions, in case they go away with inaccurate connotations and answers.<br />
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We also worked with the premise that a museum object, whether an artifact or a specimen, has always a story to relate. If the story is not obvious through the dimensional image of the object or specimen, then the interpretation of the story rests in its complementing label or text. And this is important. These secondary interpretive components must attract and hold the visitor's attention, impart information about the object, and probe the visitor to want to learn more.<br />
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So, if much of the success of interpretation of the museum object is dependent upon the quality of these labels and texts, then I came to the conclusion that its contents deserved careful consideration.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Reverse view of <i>Daspletosaurus</i>, with dinosaur skin casts and light-up Q&A panels visible on the wall. Image by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/23575605@N08/2375071171/">Chuck Clark on Flickr</a>.</span><b> </b><br />
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<b>THE LABELS</b></div>
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A good text or label always lends a voice to the inanimate museum object or specimen. A poor label or text will cause the object to be mute, thus detracting the visitor from the object.<br />
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So Russell, Harrington and I, thought that the kind of labeling that was needed for the exhibits in the Dinosaur Hall was that they should be carefully studied and determined during the early planning stages of the exhibits. We thought that the textual components of the object should be an integral part of the design, both as a visual element and also to conceptualize intellectually the theme and story that is related to the object.<br />
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As most of you know, writing labels and texts is in itself a fine art, and follows the basic principles of good precis writing. The writing has to be imaginative, instructive, brief, and should provoke the visitor's interest. Brief, because it has been established as a fact through museum visitor evaluations, that visitors reading a long and clumsy textual material is a rare phenomena. Only a few of the visitors will read every label in a museum, regardless how succinctly the labels may have been prepared. So, after much thought, we decided to limit our texts, not labels, to 35 to 50 words. This is why you may see that most of the text on the wall panels and back lit transparencies in the Dinosaur Hall are between 35 to 50 words. This was a challenging proposition, but we managed to do it after much editing and re-writes between the three of us. I wrote them and then took them over to Russell and Harrington, they looked at them, massaged them the way they thought they should be et cetera, and that is how it happened, and it wasn't easy.<br />
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The three of us agreed on four types of textual writing for the exhibits to establish the interpretive function. Exhibits that were grouped as a unit displaying an overall theme had a main label, which was also known as the area heading. This was brief and imaginative, announcing to the visitor the subject of the exhibit area that he or she will next see, and of course, attract the attention and guide the visitor through the displays. e.g. ANCESTRY OF MODERN ANIMALS WITH BACK BONES 360 MILLION YEARS AGO.<br />
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These overall themes of areas often contain sub-themes. These, again, we thought should be brief, and often should provide enough information to contribute to some awareness of what the exhibits are supposed to say.<br />
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The next text is a biggy - the explanatory label or body text. This is the one which we thought should be written between 35 and 50 words, with specific information which will tie in the specimens in a particular area. So if I have to continue with my earlier area label, this is what we wrote for the body text -<br />
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<i>Some fishes had acquired the ability to breathe air and crawl on land. The first forests appeared, as the woody tissues of certain plants became strong enough to support tall trees and able to conduct water to leaves high above the ground.</i> (42 words)<br />
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And finally there were the captions or specimen labels identifying the museum object. This also provided basic information to the visitor, such as the original locality of the object, etc. e.g. <i>Triceratops sp.</i> (65 million years ago), Frenchman Formation, Saskatchewan. The body texts and captions were approved by the scientists and then by the Director of the Museum. The final responsibility and accountability rested on the Museum Director.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHXZ8NMDDAKMw12DsgLbnn1hQYhyLNUXSzRHO0xEMZRFqkPKUUushyphenhyphenzkkUuhpsTlODytNyIbOVN620kouF5ZjPr6YKUykFqJ2ivFe6gd2LlKWmQLL64Vx49guAWPH4cX6EXFXKIi6nS7M/s1600/ringedseal.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHXZ8NMDDAKMw12DsgLbnn1hQYhyLNUXSzRHO0xEMZRFqkPKUUushyphenhyphenzkkUuhpsTlODytNyIbOVN620kouF5ZjPr6YKUykFqJ2ivFe6gd2LlKWmQLL64Vx49guAWPH4cX6EXFXKIi6nS7M/s320/ringedseal.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Ringed seal skeleton from the section on the Champlain Sea. Prints of this picture are <a href="http://www.ebay.com/itm/519094-Canadian-Museum-Nature-Ringed-Seal-A4-Photo-Print-/400448317904?pt=UK_art_prints_GL&hash=item5d3c9469d0">for sale on eBay</a>.</span> </div>
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The installation of the exhibits, dinosaurs, <i>et cetera</i>, were executed by the paleontology preparators and technicians. The lighting was supervised by Chief of Design, Jacques St. Cyr, and the designer Alan Todd.<br />
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This more or less concludes the evolutionary processes that took place from the early stages of writing the approach paper until the exhibits are installed for the opening of the Dinosaur Hall - Life Through the Ages, at the Victoria Memorial Museum's, National Museum of Natural Sciences which happened on October 4, 1974, and declared opened by the then Prime Minister of Canada, Pierre Elliot Trudeau. The Secretary General of National Museums Corporation was Bernard Ostry.<br />
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However, there were a few glitches that we had to overcome during the whole preparatory process. The major glitch was the possible vandalizing of the Dinosaur skeletons. When it was discussed how we could see that nothing could happen to the bones, as it would take a great effort and money to replace any missing bone, I was the one who convinced the rest that I doubted that anything would happen to the bones when the visitors realize that they are their national treasures and no harm should come to them. I even argued that the parents would control the yearnings of their youngsters who would want to pluck a bone from here and there.<br />
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And I was dead wrong. Within a week, a cast of a tooth of <i>Tyrannosaurus</i> went missing. And so did the cast of the skull of <i>Aegyptopithecus</i>, the monkey-like ape, the probable ancestor of both the great apes and man, which was hanging out of reach to the average adult visitor. This was the most irritating loss as we got it from the University of Egypt. Since we did not take a cast of the specimen, which was foolish on our part, we had to replace the missing skull with a photograph of the skull.<br />
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Then during the discussions to find the best remedy to curtail further vandalism, the installation of plastic plants was agreed upon.<br />
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-Asoka Weerasinghe<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9qDivbMsfDQVdo99CuTTMSmLy2Ivnu4Av8FGpn79NXTExnBGzMlzp_8X5U4Rxn6hhyphenhyphen0Ca38ZeEP1FjPeQJGxpdEoG2dia3D2ZMEMhXyUNNJ-TuuhmgV11B8MafVepAtWUW8NPJqIJ2JU/s1600/hypacrosaurus1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9qDivbMsfDQVdo99CuTTMSmLy2Ivnu4Av8FGpn79NXTExnBGzMlzp_8X5U4Rxn6hhyphenhyphen0Ca38ZeEP1FjPeQJGxpdEoG2dia3D2ZMEMhXyUNNJ-TuuhmgV11B8MafVepAtWUW8NPJqIJ2JU/s320/hypacrosaurus1.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Another angle on <i>Hypacrosaurus</i>. The wall mount of <i>Edmontosaurus</i> is in the new fossil gallery as well. The children's hands-on "dig" in the background was a later addition. Prints of this picture are <a href="http://www.ebay.com/itm/519091-Canadian-Museum-Nature-Duck-billed-Dinosaur-A4-Photo-Print-/400448317881?pt=UK_art_prints_GL&hash=item5d3c9469b9">for sale on eBay</a>. </span> </div>
Granthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12583224487723669907noreply@blogger.com0